


Sacrifice... ???

by TheCrazyFriend



Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-10
Updated: 2019-08-28
Packaged: 2019-09-15 11:26:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 15
Words: 13,782
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16932411
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheCrazyFriend/pseuds/TheCrazyFriend
Summary: Which got sacrificed? Facts and beliefs clash





	1. Awakening

**Author's Note:**

> This fic has been so hard to get started on!! Anyway, enjoy

“Chloe!!” A brunette’s eyes shot open, though they had once been full of hope and sparkle they had emptied and dulled into a light gray.  
“Ms. Caulfield, welcome back” a woman who had been sitting near the window in the room the brunette was in spoke directly to her  
_Who... Who are you?_ Max pondered the question in her mind, still not quite with it. She became slightly more alert when she realized there was a far more important question needed to be asked. “Where... Where's my girlfriend?” A slight pleading tone had entered her voice, _Chloe had been right by my side before I fell asleep, has she... Has she left me?_  
“Ms. Caulfield, you know this... Worrying, it’s not healthy?”  
“Where is my girlfriend?” Max repeated herself  
“You need to take a deep breath” the woman reminded Max  
“Where is my Chloe? Where am I anyway?”  
“You're in the Arcadia Bay Institute, though technically we're not actually in Arcadia Bay... Wouldn't be in good taste after... what happened”  
_I... Can't be_ , “that place I’ve never even heard of it”  
“Well it was recently set up by a generous donation from the new head of the Prescott Foundation, Kristine Prescott”  
_Nathan has an older sister? Oh, of course, I completely forgot about her in all the 'excitement'!_ Max scoffed “The Prescotts?? Those murderers?!”  
“Don't worry everything is gonna be okay, Ms. Caulfield” the woman attempted to soothe the brunette but she was quickly realizing she was fighting a losing battle  
“Please stop calling me that, it’s Max.” Max quickly grew frustrated with the woman's efforts to calm her. “Now, where is my girlfriend?!” _You had better hope for your fucking sake that she's okay_  
“I don't know who you're talking about, Ms... Max”  
“Shit!!” Max sat upright and tried to stand up  
“Easy, Max” the woman whispered, “you've gone through enough hell”  
_She doesn't know how true those words are_. “And what if I have? I'm tougher than all y'all think”  
“While I don't doubt that, I have to ask you to get back into bed, you need rest”  
“Fuck that shit” she moved towards the door, opening it and marching out into the corridor.  
The woman was rather surprised at how the girl who had been described as shy and quiet was turning out to be, _this girl is quite the handful_  
“Get the hell away from me!” Max snapped at the unfortunate woman

“Is everything okay here?” a new voice called down the corridor  
“Yea, Miss Kris. Ms. Caulfield... Max here is just more of a handful than any of us had been led to believe” the woman laughed a strained laugh  
“It’s okay, I'll sort it. Ms. Caulfield, can you please take a walk with me?”  
“Kris? As in Kristine Prescott? Fuck off!”  
“Ms. Caulfield... I understand”  
“You understand nothing of the hell that you and your fucking family have put me, my friends, my family through. You Prescotts are all just as bad as Nathan, you do know that sick fuck tried to shoot my girlfriend, right? Attempted murder in the girl’s bathroom in the middle of the day of all places!!” Her voice had risen to a shriek and she was laying into the woman as heavily as she could, perhaps vicariously, perhaps not. “Your sick old man, the Prescott who's the evilest man ever to exist save Mark Jefferson himself, why he knew what Jefferson was up to, hell I heard the sick bastard confess!” _That was of course before I put a fucking bullet in his head!!_ “Your sick old man knew Jefferson was using your brother! Using him to kidnap and torture girls for his creepy bordering on pedo photography obsession!! Using him to dispose of any girl who woke up during the torture sessions, like poor Rachel Amber!! He. Does. Not. Care!!”  
Max was prepared to continue verbally assaulting the woman who stood before her but found herself unable to continue since the woman was already out for the count, sobbing heavily. “Please Ms. Caulfield, you need to return to your room, Miss Kristine will explain everything once you do so and... She's composed herself”  
_She can fuck her dead dad for all I care_


	2. Survivors

“Ms. Caulfield”  
“Christ, I asked you to stop calling me that!”  
“I'm sorry, Maxine”  
Max simply glowered at the familiar woman stood before her. “I think Max would prefer it if you used her preferred name, Janice”  
“Yes, Miss. Kris” the women bobbed her head, “my apologies, Max”  
“Leave me alone” Max hissed, “go call my girlfriend”  
“You heard the woman, go call her!”  
“Miss. Kris...” Janice began, concern and regret clear in her tone  
“You heard me!”  
“Her name is Chloe Price, right?” Janice replied, speaking directly to the disheveled and traumatized young woman standing before her  
“Yeah...? Why?”  
“I need to know who I'm gonna call” Janice shrunk slightly under Kristine's intense glare  
“Yes, Chloe Price, her cell is...” Max read out Chloe's number from memory  
“In the meantime, let's go to my office and have a talk about this whole thing”

Eventually, Max conceded and nodded timidly. Max, still in her pajamas followed the older woman to the elevator which could only be operated by a biometric fingerprint reader and went up to the top floor where there was an open plan office. “Come on in, Max” Kristine called out to Max  
“Okay...?” _Maybe I'll fucking find out where I am and why the fuck these people are looking after me!_  
“Miss. Kris?”  
Kristine hit the intercom button, “go ahead, Janice”  
“Joyce and David Madsen are on their way to visit Ms. Caulfield”  
“What about Chloe?!”  
“Max, please take a seat” Max did so and waited patiently for Kristine to talk. “Max, what do you remember of what happened a week ago?”  
“Th... The storm” Max mumbled, _the storm killed Joyce_  
“Could you speak up?”  
“The s... Storm”  
“The storm? Describe this storm to me”  
“You must've seen it, it did destroy the entire town...!” _She doesn’t fucking believe me_  
“Mhm” Kristine looked distinctly uncomfortable at what Max had said  
“Am I going fucking crazy?!”  
“No, of course not, Max”

Fifteen minutes later Janice returned, “Mr. And Mrs. Madsen are on their way, I'm just going to buzz them in”  
She hurried off to do so and escorted Joyce and David back up to the family meeting room which was directly opposite Kristine's office. “Mr. And Mrs. Madsen” Kristine smiled at them  
“Hi” David grunted, holding out his hand for Kristine  
“Hi, Mrs. Madsen, hi Mr. Madsen”  
“Please, call me Joyce, you are looking after our Max after all”  
“Likewise, my name is David”  
“Fair enough. Max is... Not good”  
“Where is she?” Joyce asked in a hushed, gentle tone  
“In my office, Joyce” Kristine left the room and returned moments later with Max who hid behind the very women she had been cursing out the day before  
“Max, sweetie” Joyce called out to her in an incredibly gentle tone, extending her hand and smiling gently. 

Max, over the course of a few minutes, came out of her shell and walked cautiously to Joyce who pulled her into a reassuring hug. Immediately the younger woman broke down and was soon sobbing into Joyce's shoulder. “I... I don't know where Chloe is, we both got out of the way of the storm and were up at the lighthouse, now this woman and her accomplice aren't letting me see your daughter!! I promise I kept her safe from the storm!!” _I need to see my girlfriend!! Whoa, slow down Max_  
“Max...” Joyce began but was cut off by a look from Kristine. “Chloe loved you very much, she just couldn't be here today”  
“Joyce, David, in about half an hour we should talk in my office to talk” Kristine explained quietly


	3. The Institute

“Where's Chloe!?”  
“Max, don't you remember what happened?” Joyce was speaking quietly and gently, trying to reassure Max  
“What the fuck do you mean, of course, I remember saving Chloe's life!” Max was quick to become as exasperated as she was with Kristine and Janice.  
“Max, sweetie, you didn't” Joyce whispered  
“Yes, I did!!”  
“Sweetie, Chloe's funeral was yesterday”  
“No, it wasn't!!” Max shrieked. “I fucking saved her fucking life! Prick-scott didn't get the chance to hurt her!!” _I'm not... I'm not fucking crazy!!_  
“Mr. And Mrs. Madsen, can I have a word in my office?”  
“Miss. Prescott?”  
“Now, please. I don't want to have to have Max sedated”  
“Fine, Miss. Prescott” Joyce sighed and gestured, “come on, David”  
“Okay” the man grunted, reaching out to pat Max on the shoulder but Max's recoil left David’s hand hanging in midair  
“Don't fucking touch me!!” _I know you hit Chloe!!_

Kristine led Joyce and David to her office across the hall. “What the hell is wrong with Max?!” Joyce's voice was high pitched and clearly scared  
“Mrs. Madsen, Max is suffering from a condition known as grandiose schizophrenia”  
“That sounds so unlike Max”  
“I understand this is difficult, Mrs. Madsen”  
“You're damn right it is. This grandiose schizophrenia... thing, what makes you think Max has... It?”  
“When we were called by the school, Max was rambling on about something, something unbelievable”  
“Something like what?”  
“Time travel”  
“Uh... Excuse me”  
“You heard me, Mr. Madsen”  
“To use Max's vernacular, are you cereal?”  
“As serious as it's possible to be, Mrs. Madsen”  
“Time travel? How does that fit into Ch... Chloe's passing?”  
“She was mumbling about... Rewinds, Chloe's death in the bathroom, Jefferson and Nathan”  
“Rewinds?”  
“That's what Max called it, her 'ability’ to 'rewind time’.”  
David chuckled and Joyce slapped his shoulder, “don't laugh, David” Joyce reprimanded  
“Sorry, it's just unbelievable nonsense, right, Joyce?”  
“Max believes it. I mean not just a passing belief, but fully and completely”  
“So what else do you know?”  
“Once we had her on medication to make her more relaxed, she explained in excruciating detail about the week she had that nobody else can confirm. She saved Chloe's life with a rewind and they worked together through the week to try to find that missing girl, Rachel”  
“Chloe was desperate to find her and I didn't even find out that Max was back until earlier this week” Joyce replied, “A few days after Chloe's passing”  
“Well, we couldn't let anyone see her until her parents were notified and the admission and orientation period was over. We contacted Ryan and Vanessa the day after Max was admitted but they can't get down here for a while which is why we contacted you... But Max remembers differently, she remembers a whole week of hanging with Chloe and getting reacquainted with your family”  
“I see...”

Joyce was interrupted by a shriek from nearby. “Please excuse me” Kristine sighed and retreated to her office where Max was led spreadeagle on the floor at a strange angle. “You had to sedate her, Janice?”  
“Yep. She kept on ranting and struggling, trying to get free. She was ranting about 'rewinding to find Chloe’.”  
“She's really quite sick” Joyce had poked her head around the door  
“Yeah, she is”  
“Can you help her, Miss. Prescott?”  
“I don't know, but we’ll try”


	4. When the unbroken become shattered

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally have some idea where I want this story to go!

“Where... Where am I?” Her eyes opened slowly, almost blinded by the harsh unforgiving fluorescent lights of the room she found herself in  
“Ah. You are awake, now we can begin” a pseudo soothing voice whispered in what was meant to be a calming tone  
“No... No, not again, please stop... Let me die... Oh god, I’d rather die” The same voice whispered out, speaking blindly to her captors  
“Unfortunately, there's only one way to get the freaks here to obey us” The formerly soothing voice had lost all pretenses and was harsh, demanding and loud  
A blinding pain to the side of a woman's head caused an ear-splitting scream to echo around the room as spots appeared in her vision. Seconds later her eyes clamped shut so tightly that her vision flashed with further patterns and flashing lights. “STOP!!!!”  
“We know you can do it, we’re not gonna stop til you comply!! The boss ain't even here!” Another voice taunted happily.  
“For Arcadia Bay!” A third cried gleefully

“Stop... Please, don't do this anymore” Another weak voice called out amidst tortured tears

*****

Max sat on her bed slightly confused, she had woken to Joyce and David sitting by her bed once again. “Where's mom and dad?” She asked quietly, looking up at them. _They were supposed to be visiting today, right?_  
“Oh sweetie, I'm so sorry. Ryan and Vanessa had to go back to Seattle, they had to go back to work” Joyce's soothing Southern accent filled the room, immediately dispelling most of Max's fears  
“But... They are supposed to be here, in Arcadia Bay until I get outta here” The hospitalized young adult whispered weakly to the woman she considered a second mom while frantic wild eyes darted around her hospital room fearfully. _They left me the moment they realized how 'broken’ I am, I hate this place!!_  
“Max, sweetie, I'm afraid that might not be for a fair amount of time, yer gonna have to stay here for now” Joyce moved forward to give Max a hug but all was not well in Max's world  
“How... How long?” She whispered quietly, her fear apparent.  
“We don't know, Max. Sweetheart, you've been having delusions that you saved Chloe, by _time travel_ no less.” Joyce scoffed, _time travel was impossible and even if it was surely it wasn't a trick you could pick up, right?_ “You're very sick, Max” Joyce had realized she had openly disbelieved Max's situation and shifted her tone back to one of motherly concern and soothing  
“But... But I can remember doing it all, hell even the timeline where William was...” _Shit!_ Max hadn't wanted to tell anyone in the universe about the alternate universe yet it slipped out  
“Where William was what?” David asked quietly  
“Where William was still alive!! I went back in time and was able to stop him!! You guys gotta believe me!!” Max thrashed about in her bed, she was restrained by thick fabric straps that were a recent addition after her quickly aborted escape attempt where she had attempted to flee Kristine as well as her psychotic breakdown in a meeting with Joyce and David. She screamed desperately, trying to writhe free from the restraints  
“Sweetheart, this isn't healthy. I understand that you're trying to escape the loss of your best friend but, Max, she’s gone” Joyce reached out but Max recoiled  
“No, she's not!! I fucking saved her!!”  
“Max, Chloe's funeral was yesterday” Joyce dropped the big bombshell on Max, unsure if she’d be able to take it but knowing that she had to tell Max sooner or later. Max's big blue eyes shimmered with unshed tears but before Max could speak, Joyce continued. “Max, your parents made me your legal guardian for while you're here in Arcadia Bay.

A few moments later, Kristine entered to call an end to visiting hours but stopped when she saw Max crying uncontrollably, Joyce's hand on her cheek to provide what little comfort she could to the broken young woman strapped to the bed

*****

“ **DON'T!! DO NOT MOVE ANY CLOSER, IF YOU DO I WILL MAKE YOU REGRET IT!!** ” The loud and powerful voice bellowed over other frantic yells


	5. Horror

“How’s she taking the news?” once Max had calmed down, Kristine invited Joyce and David into her office for coffee and a talk  
“Not great, Ms. Prescott. Max screamed and cried once you left” Joyce replied, her eyes still red from the tears she had shed at Max's anguish. She hated leaving Max doped up like she was but she hated watching Max scream and cry infinitely more. The lies however came naturally by that point  
“Yeah well, I'm not surprised. She refuses to cry in front of me or other staff.” Kristine almost sounded vulnerable, the regret she had been feeling was overwhelming. “You have my deepest condolences for what happened to Chloe, by the way. I wish I had been there, maybe I could've helped”  
Joyce nodded solemnly, wordlessly thanking the woman. “The bullet, it went through both girls and ended up lodged in Chloe's throat” she whispered  
“I've read Max's medical report, the bullet went straight through her by all accounts, she was very lucky”  
Despite everything, the blonde woman was relieved. “Mhm, she was in surgery for quite awhile. That was before all this craziness started.” Joyce indicated the office they were sat in and by extension the entire Institute. “What an insane year”  
“Yeah, I guess you're right. I do feel sorry for my bro... Nate” she watched Joyce shudder involuntarily at the name. “Sorry” Kristine added on in a whisper  
“It’s okay, Ms. Prescott. I know he was manipulated by that sick Jefferson fellow. To think he could just get employed by a school and almost get away with it all.”  
“I also heard that your father was also arrested?” David asked in his usual gravelly voice  
“Yeah, well that shit stain had it coming, he always was a dick that I fled as soon as I could but I didn't think even he would get involved with this whole kidnapping girls thing” Joyce just remained quiet, finishing the last of her coffee and therefore signifying the end of the meeting. 

David, who was not very good with situations like the one he found himself in remained quiet until the building shook underneath his feet. “What the fuck?” he looked to Kristine who looked back at him with the same confusion. She picked up her radio and asked what was going on while Joyce was struggling to remain seated as the entire building shook. Kristine got nothing useful from the radio, all she heard over it were screams and shouted orders  
“We gotta evacuate” came Kristine’s calm response to David’s earlier question. David slipped his gun out of its holster at the words, “and we gotta pick Max up on the way”  
David looked over at Kristine as if she'd grown two heads, “what about your staff, Ms. Prescott?”  
“They seem to be... Uh... Otherwise occupied?” The brunette eyed the useless radio through which came an increase in shouted orders and screams that really grated on David’s consciousness for some reason. He saw the fear in her eyes, the confusion at what was going on so he made an executive decision and took control  
“You two stay behind me, you'll both carry Max” he ordered.  
Both the women nodded quickly, the fear easily apparent. “David, what's going on?”  
He shook his head, “I have no idea,” he had decided to be honest with the two women. “It's not an earthquake, but those people are screaming like... Like the soldiers did as they were mowed down by bullets” David’s words struck fear into both Kristine and Joyce  
_Are we in a war zone?_ Kristine quickly put two and two together, David’s words told her he was a soldier and soldiers only got mowed down by bullets in an active war zone. She found herself shaking in terror. The Peace Corps had been a world away from an active war zone and for some reason that was exactly what was breaking out somewhere in her Institute  
_Are we gonna die?_ Joyce had the thought and had to immediately push it out of her head. _David knows what to do, he’ll keep us safe_

The three adults arrived outside Max's room and a quick glance inside revealed the petite brunette still knocked out by the potent mix of antipsychotics and sedatives. “Yeah I guess David was right, we’re gonna have to carry her. Ms. Masden, if you will?” Kristine pulled Max upright and with Joyce's help got her out of the room. Another loud crash and another shockwave through the building almost had the four of them on the floor yet they had somehow managed to stay upright. “What the hell is going on?” Kristine muttered, somewhere below her she could hear the sound of gunfire


	6. Flames

Max woke up a short distance from the hospital which was ablaze, intense flames licked out of the windows and were slowly consuming everything within the hospital. “W-where am I?” was all she whispered  
“Ah, Max. You're awake” Kristine replied, “I'm glad to see that, after what happened in the Institute I'm glad that at least someone has gotten out of there with their lives”  
“What happened?” she asked, she hadn't liked being trapped in the Institute, despite the fact that it was all very luxurious it still felt like a prison.  
“Nobody knows, anybody who saw it ended up...” Kristine cut herself off, unwilling to share the gruesome details with Max, the ones she knew anyway. She looked over at Joyce and David, sat together a short distance away and consoling one another. _Poor Mr. And Mrs. Madsen... Those poor souls don't deserve this shit_  
“Have you at least... Found Chloe’s body yet?” Kristine shook her head and Max, to her shock, wasn't overly surprised as weird shit seemed to happen to her a lot. Max, still not able to accept what they had told her earlier simply stared off into the distance absently, the crackling of the fire in the Institute the only background noise to her brooding. “Well, it's been nice to be cared for but I'm afraid I'm gonna have to cut this short, I have school to attend.”  
“Max, you do realize you've missed an entire year, right?” Joyce spoke in that calming motherly tone but for the first time in her life, Max wasn't soothed  
“Uh...” Max was dumbfounded a feeling that quickly turned to fear, she had spent an entire _year_ locked away in that Institute. _Guess that's what you get for playing god of time, Max_  
“It’s been a year since Chloe died” Kristine whispered, trying her best to support the grieving young women  
“That can't be right. I want to check the date, the time. Your phone will do” Max glared at Kristine with such ferocity that she handed her phone over and Max checked the date. “October twenty-first... 2014. No...” _What the fuck?!_  
“I'm sorry, Max. You spent most of the year in a stupor after learning about Chloe's...” 

A resounding boom interrupted Kristine's words, a more intense fireball than ever had erupted from what remained of the windows and doors. Where there had once been glass and wood there was nothing, the glass having been shattered some time ago by the vengeful fury of the flames, flames that were tinted ever so slightly with a color that Max thought had no place in a fire, well unless that fire was exceedingly hot. “What the fuck?!” Max turned back toward the building and watched the four walls peel away under the intense onslaught of flames  
“I have no idea, I haven't ever seen a fire burn so...” she paused  
“What, Ms. Prescott?” Max asked  
“So strangely,” Kristine concluded. “This was awhile back when you were in Seattle but there was this massive forest fire that started when someone set fire to a trash can and couldn't be stopped until... One day when it just well, stopped by itself. I was in Brazil at the time so my brother told me about it.”  
“So this kinda thing has happened before?” _Is it really possible that there's someone else out there with powers?! Am I really not going insane?!_ Max slowly lifted her arm and experimentally held it out in front of her, her mind felt clearer than it had in a long while but that by itself was no guarantee... Max clenched her fist, ignoring what Kristine was asking so she could concentrate on her one goal: unlocking her powers. She struggled for a good few minutes to find purchase to grip on to the flow of time she knew was so tantalizingly close but she remained unable to do so. “Shit!!” Max spat to find Joyce, David and Kristine all watching her with concern and pelting her with questions she didn't have any answers to, questions she was in fact finding incredibly irritating  
“Are you okay?” that was Joyce  
“Do you need some more meds?” that was David  
“Max, you know you can talk to us, right?” that was Kristine  
“Shut up all of you!” Max snapped, again focusing on her hand and the full force of her consciousness on the stubborn flow of time. _I'm not gonna be defeated by you, time. I'm gonna make you my bitch and bring my one true love, Chloe back!!_

Slowly, oh so slowly she felt her hand tighten around something intangible, she looked up slightly and saw everything was moving at a snail's pace. Tightening her grip she looked around to see everything frozen around her. “Hell! Yeah!!” she shouted into the void of complete silence, her voice immediately getting snuffed out by the silence. _The motherfucking Time Warrior is back, bitches!!_ She observed Joyce and David frozen with expressions of so much concern and sympathy in their faces that Max couldn't help but feel a pang of sorrow for the couple, of Kristine struggling with a syringe of that medicine that was supposed to help her yet only seemed to cloud her mind. _Thanks but no fucking thanks_ Max scowled, taking the syringe and throwing it as far as she could. Feeling a slight headache growing she turned back to the Insititute and saw that the flames had not been frozen. _Weird..._ “Hello?” she called out into the void

A figure emerged from the Institute building unscathed by the fire.  
“Hello, Max!!” the voice called back jubilantly  
“R-Rachel?!”


	7. Blank periods of time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some readers may find certain scenes unsettling.

“R-Rachel?!” Max had almost breathed the word, despite it being silent other than the faint crackle of the Institute burning in the background she knew the young woman approaching her wouldn't be likely to hear her

The young woman moved forward toward Max. Surrounded by the silhouette of flames, Max remained unable to grasp the woman's identity. The voice was also unfamiliar. Max’s mind was racing as the silhouette moved closer. _Based on what Chloe told me, Rachel was able to control fire but how is she able to move during my time freeze?_

*****

 **Somewhere**  
“You know what will happen if you do not comply, Ms. Caulfield. If you do not do as we wish, she will suffer the consequences” The cruel voice that had once been so understanding had spoken once again, its owner had indicated the other terrified young woman in the room. He had already outlined his demands yet Max did not comply, she would not comply, she couldn't  
“No... Please don't hurt her... Please” Max was pleading with the man to spare the woman she barely even recognized  
“Do you know where you are?” The man had decided to refrain from further demands that Max would refuse and instead decided to ask some questions, some questions that he hoped would lead to him being able to hurt the woman to force Max to use her powers  
“No.”  
“Good. Do you know what you're doing here?”  
“Yes”  
“Good, what are you doing here?”  
“Getting better after my _psychotic episode_ ” Max replied defiantly  
The man's faux reassuring smile faded into a tight-lipped expression. “Hurt her”

The order given, two men walked toward the young woman who was bound and helpless. One man pulled gloves on while another prepped what looked to be some kind of power drill. The girl thrashed in her restraints letting out terrified squeaks until the drill bit was placed against the side of her head by the man wearing gloves. “D-don't do it! I've been through thi... AAAAAAAAAAARGHHH”  
Max snapped quicker and quicker each time they repeated and it was no different, at the start it took them a minute or two to get her to cave yet at the six-month mark it was only a second or two. “Stop!! Stop, please!! I'll rewind!! I'll do whatever you ask!!”

The man in charge held up his hand after a few moments and the man with the power drill withdrew, leaving a sobbing wailing mess of a young woman strapped to the chair. “If you rewind you'll also cure your friend of her injuries”  
“Okay! Okay!” Needing no more convincing, Max held up her hand slowly, noticing as she did so two guns jabbing her in the back. She had barely enough time to wonder how long those guns had been pointed at her before the man turned around and set his expectant eyes upon her. Gulping, she started her rewind, going back to before the man ordered that the stranger was to be hurt. As she watched from where she was strapped down, the men all walked backward, the woman strapped down in front of her had the power drill placed against her head as blood went back into the wound then the power drill was withdrawn again, her temple unmarked.

“Good, what are you doing here?”  
“I-I don't know” Max's voice was incredibly unstable  
“You don't?” the man sighed. “Very well, wipe her memory and return her to her room, we can continue at a later date” Max felt a sharp scratch on the back of her neck and she slowly faded. “At least we know the new tech works” a voice stated as she faded. “The Prescott woman will be leaving for a month’s vacation beginning next week, that's our best chance of making this work”  
“But sir, it's been six months” Max heard no more than that, she had faded into unconsciousness

*****

“Who the hell are you?”  
“Oh man, I go through all that shit and you don't even recognize me. Fucking figures” The stranger complained to herself  
“You’re Rachel Amber”

*****

 **Somewhere**  
“You’re hella gonna pay for this. I'll make sure of it” An agitated voice cut through the otherwise silent laboratory  
“And what exactly do you think you’ll be able to do?” The evil man's voice was smooth and calm yet so clearly mocking  
“I remember” she replied simply  
“You remember, what exactly?”  
“ _Everything_ ” the woman stated gravely  
“Everything?” The man's voice had gone slightly squeaky. _That should not be possible_  
“Yup. The countless times you tortured me to make that poor girl do whatever you wanted her to do. The grueling periods I had to go without food because that bitch refused to do what you wanted. I told you, I remember _EVERYTHING_ ”  
“So what do you intend to do?” He asked while men moved into position to restrain her if necessary even though she was already restrained  
“Quite simply, I intend to kill her”  
“Then you have outlived your usefulness. I see no choice but to terminate you” He signaled and the men moved forward to carry out his orders  
“That'll be the biggest mistake you'll ever make” She warned and the man advanced on her, reaching out to grasp the wrist that had an IV line securely strapped to it. “You fool”

The man who had intended to finish her off with a lethal injection shrieked, withdrawing his suddenly blackened hand. A fire burned in the eyes of his former victim as the restraints holding her down burned, leaving raw bands of reddened skin around her wrists and ankles. “Holy shit!!” one of the guards yelled in shock and awe, he tried to beat a hasty retreat but the young woman was taking no chances and was already focusing her fury on the men in the room with her.  
“You fools are already dead”

*****

"Dude...!!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Might need to upgrade this to a mature? What do people think?
> 
> Theories, comments, questions are all welcome


	8. Powers reborn

“No!! I'm not Rachel _fucking_ Amber!!” The woman took another step forward toward Max who backed away considering how tall the woman was when she towered over her.  
“Then who...?” Max peered up at the pissed off blonde  
“Jesus fucking Christ, Max!! You don't even recognize your childhood friend anymore?!” Chloe yelled down at Max, mad at having seemingly been forgotten by the hippie  
_Chloe?!_ “But...” _But she's dead_  
“Yeah, congratu-fucking-lations” Chloe scoffed and moved to kneel next to Max. “You have no fucking idea what’s been going on, do you?” Chloe reached out and placed her hands around Max's neck. “TELL ME YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY DID TO ME!!” Chloe screamed, tightening her grip on Max's throat  
Max winced and coughed as Chloe's hands tightened around her throat. “W-what are you talking about?!”  
“Max, when you talk to me, AT LEAST USE MY NAME!!” The unstable blonde tightened her grip around Max's throat  
“C-Chloe...” Max gasped, it was becoming harder and harder for her to hold time still and even keep herself conscious.  
“That wasn't too hard was it?!” Chloe snapped, loosening her grip on Max's neck slightly, allowing the hippie to breathe once again. “Now, answer my fucking question!! Do you have any memories of what they did to me?!?!”  
Max had to stop and think. “... No” she finally gasped out the one word answer, still attempting to get her breath back after Chloe strangled her. “Chloe, they told me you were dead”  
“Oh, I died many times... Many of them slow and painful. Do you HAVE ANY IDEA what it’s like TO HAVE a fucking drill THROUGH THE SKULL?!” Chloe roared at her friend, she had been suffering alone for far too long and all the pent up rage hadn't yet been burned up. Her voice was unstable, it wavered, increased and decreased in volume and pitch. “Max they fucking tortured me to make you use your r-rewind!!”  
_No... They hurt my Chlo?_ Max felt fury rise up and engulf her, more fury than she had ever felt at any time in her life before  
“They moved you down from the Institute building to the basement level where they forced you to rewind by threatening to hurt me. They then took you away and did something to your mind, wiped it. I think they did that so that woman, Kristine wouldn't find out about their little experiment.”  
“Oh, Chlo... I'm so sorry” Max whispered to Chloe  
“I guess it's not your fault. You always did end up rewinding to stop them hurting me. I-I'm sorry I lost my temper and hurt you”  
“It's okay, Chloe. Please don't mention it again, I just wanna forget it but... How are you still here in my r-rewind?”  
“I don't know... Might be something to do with that” she indicated over her shoulder with her thumb  
“Mhm, maybe”  
“I have Rachel's powers now?” Chloe looked over, stunned by the revelation  
“Chloe?” Max and Chloe had discussed Rachel at length and one of the subjects that had been covered was how weird the fire had been  
“Rachel had the power to manipulate fire and maybe the air... That first night we were together, as friends at the time, was hella weird. We went out to that park where we saw her mom though we didn't notice that at the time. After a quick smash shit up sesh in the junkyard and a quick argument we met back at the park. Rachel burned her photo of her and her father, dropped it in a trash can then the kicked it, creating that wildfire and enhancing it with every scream”  
“And now... You have that power too?”  
“I do”  
“This is so weird. Come on, let's get the hell outta here, Chloe” Max looked warily at the women who had supposedly been tasked with keeping her safe, a task that they had failed at if Chloe was to be believed as well as the married couple who were their parents or legal guardians  
“Sure.” Chloe moved over to Joyce and kissed her goodbye. “I love you, mom. See ya, step-douche”

Together, Max and Chloe wandered off back in the direction of Arcadia Bay...


	9. Everything that has an ending...

“Oh hell,” Chloe grumbled. “How much fucking further until we get back to Arcadia Bay?” She always had hated cross country, except when it was a pirate adventure.  
“It can't be much further, Chloe” Max replied, wiping her forehead as it was coated with sweat, they had been walking for several hours after all  
“Fuck... I hope you're...” Chloe’s words died in her throat as she and Max came across a tall fence that curved around an area that must've been the size of a small town.  
“Oh god, no...” Max whispered  
“Max...?”  
“We gotta see what's going on, climb the fence!!”  
Chloe quickly scaled the fence, her more athletic build, though it had suffered from a year of forced inactivity, was better suited to scaling wire fences. “Holy shit...” Chloe paused, the horror in her voice apparent. “It’s... It's a wreck. Whatever used to be here, whatever town... It was totally obliterated. No... No no no no no, it can't be...! Max, this was Arcadia Bay!!”  
“What the fuck?” Max scaled the fence, quickly joining Chloe atop the fence that had been set up to completely surround what was left of Arcadia Bay. The entire town was leveled and it was clear that demolition work and subsequent construction work was taking place. The construction offices had the logo of the Prescott Corporation upon them  
“Max, the storm came...”  
“No... I can't... Can't sacrifice you”

“Max...” the two young women had walked all the way through the ruins of what was left of old Arcadia Bay and toward the lighthouse. It was a sobering few hours as they strolled through the remains of their old hometown. The salty sea air, far from soothing Max, actually made her nauseous.  
“Chloe, I can't sacrifice you, even if the storm was is my storm. I caused this... I caused all of this. I changed fate and destiny so much that... I actually did alter the course of everything. And all I really created was just death and destruction!” Max looked at Chloe with fear in her eyes  
“Max, fuck all of that, okay? You were given a power. You didn't ask for it... and you saved me. Which had to happen, all of this did... except for what happened to Rachel. But without your power, we wouldn't have found her! Okay, so you're not the goddamn Time Master after all, but you're Maxine Caulfield... and you're amazing but Max, this is the only way.” Chloe pulled a photograph out of Max's bag  
_I really should have destroyed the damn thing_. Max took the photograph anyway, gazing down at it with something akin to hatred. “I feel like I took this shot a thousand years ago.” _And who knows how many times I've been here... Something must've happened to cause me to lose my memory, right?_  
“You... You could use that photo to change everything right back to when you took that picture... All that would take is for me to... to...” Chloe was unable to finish the sentence, hiding her face in her hands, she knew she had to die to change the course of events, in order to save everyone  
Max scowled, she didn't like Chloe's self-depreciation, especially after she has been the one to free both of them from that horrific institution. “Fuck that! No... no way! You are my number one priority now. You are all that matters to me, Chloe I love you.”  
“I know. You proved that over and over again... even though I don't deserve it. I'm so selfish... not like my mom... Look what she had to give up and live through... and she did. She deserved so much more than to be disfigured by an explosion in a fucking diner. Even my step... father deserved to live the life he had. There are so many more people in Arcadia Bay who should have lived... way more than me...” Chloe pointed at the photograph  
“Don't say that... I won't trade you, especially after what you went through the past year! As a result of me no less!”  
“You're not trading me,” Chloe argued back. “Maybe you've just been delaying my real destiny, Max... Look at how many times I almost died or actually died around you. Look at what's happened in Arcadia Bay ever since you first saved me, remember what I went through after we fucked with destiny. I know I've been selfish, but for once I think I should accept my fate... our fate... Besides, letting me die will mean I never have to go through any of that torture!”  
“Chloe...” Max fell to her hands and knees and puked all over the grass, her legs had given way underneath her, _I'm really going to have to say goodbye to Chloe!!_  
“Max, you finally came back to me, and... you did nothing but show me your love and friendship. You made me smile and laugh like I haven't done in years. Wherever I end up after this... in whatever reality... all those moments between us were real, and they'll always be ours. No matter what you choose, I know you'll make the right decision.” Chloe's eyes were streaming, she hated what the storm had been forcing on them for over a year since the shooting  
“Chloe... I can't make this choice...” Max whispered, tears streaming down her cheeks as well. “Please, Chloe, I beg you”  
Chloe grabbed Max, holding her firmly with a shake off her head “No, Max... You're the only one who can... Max, it's time...”  
“Chloe... I'm so, so sorry... I... I don't want to do this.”

Chloe hugged Max tightly, hoping that the contact would allow them both to calm down enough to complete what they had to do. “I know, Max. But we have to. We have to save everybody, okay? And you'll make those fuckers pay for what they did to Rachel. Being together... it was the best farewell gift I could have hoped for. You're my hero, Max. I love you, more than I could ever say” Max and Chloe moved forward as one to share a heated, passionate kiss. “Max, I'll always love you... Now, get out of here, please! Do it before I freak. And Maxine Caulfield? Don't you forget about me...” Chloe pleaded as she backed away and out of sight  
“Never.” The one word was a mere whisper, lost to the quiet puffs of wind that passed over the raised cliff without interruption, the carcass of the lighthouse stood guard, the only witness to what was about to happen. Max knew what she had to do, she focused on the photo she hated so much and traveled back to when she had taken that damn photograph. She took the freshly printed photo from her camera and tossed it to the bathroom floor, stomping on it in a childish burst of anger, pissed at the universe itself for giving her the damn power then not letting her use it without the direst of consequences. She hid away in the corner behind the stall and waited for the bathroom door to open.

Max's dream that the door would never open was quickly shattered as it indeed opened, revealing an anxious and panicky Nathan, as it always did. “It's cool, Nathan... Don't stress, you're okay, bro, just... count to three. Don't be scared. You own this school... If I wanted, I could blow it up. You're the boss...” The blue butterfly, one of only three witnesses to the last few moments of Chloe’s life landed on the edge of the sink near Nathan as the blunette entered the bathroom. “So, what do you want?”  
“I hope you checked the perimeter, as my step-ass would say.” Chloe opened each of the stall doors in turn, checking for eavesdroppers. “Now, let's talk bidness” she moved closer to Nathan, too close. Max cowered behind the stall, awaiting the imminent bang that would signal the end of Chloe's life  
_No, I'm so sorry... I wish there was a..._ Max was suddenly interrupted by a loud bang


	10. Shattered Heart

“What the fuck?! You coulda killed me, crazy bitch!!” Nathan moved to shove Chloe but she extended one of her muscular arms, the one with her sleeve tattoo and held him back  
“Hah, so it's okay for you to have a gun to kill me but the moment I take your gun and shoot it it’s suddenly wrong to have a gun? Fuck off Prescott” the blunette punk scowled and shoved him back with a grunt  
“I'm going to make your life hell!! I swear I'm going to make your life hell!!” Nathan spat  
“Run along to your rich daddy” the blunette taunted  
“Bitch!”  
“Pathetic little coward”  
“Whatthefuckever!!” Nathan turned around and sprinted from the bathroom, straight into David Madsen who saw him tuck his gun away  
“Why do you have a gun, young man?!” the Blackwell chief of security exclaimed  
“I-I uh... I don't”  
“Suuuuure you don't”  
“... Shit”  
“Come on, young man, let's go. The principal office awaits”  
“Fuck you, it's the blue haired bitch's fault!! Bitch blackmailed me!!”

David didn't move for a few moments then slammed his fist into Nathan's face with a crunch of breaking bones. Nathan howled at the top of his lungs and dropped to the ground. He curled up into a fetal position with a whimper. “Don't talk about my step-daughter like that!!” David hissed, his face red in his fury.  
“Shit!”  
“Come on Prescott. You're coming with me” David growled and started to drag Nathan away from the bathroom while Chloe remained in the bathroom

“Out you come, Caulfield!!” Chloe snapped. “Caulfield, I know you're back there”  
_How...?_ Max froze up at Chloe snapping her name. She had sat down on the floor with her back against the end stall, her eyes filled with tears. She had genuinely believed that Chloe was going to die, again. Max had pretty much shut down as soon as she had arrived back at the bathroom by using the butterfly photograph, she had stumbled back so her back was up against the stall before closing her eyes and willing the outside world away  
“CAULFIELD!!” Chloe bellowed. “Get your traitorous hippie ass out here now!!”  
_How the fuck does Chloe know I'm here!?_  
“I guess you're as much the traitorous cowardly little hippie as you've always been!!”  
_Chloe... I'm so sorry_. Max gulped, she wasn't really ready to face her old friend. _After five long years, I still don't have the guts to talk to Chloe even though she somehow knows I'm here!_  
“Goodbye, Caulfield. Don't bother talking to me, not that you'd ever pluck up the lady balls to do so. You were my whole world, Caulfield then you fled to Seattle and left me to die in this shitty hick town!!”  
_Oh, Chloe... If only you knew..._ Max hadn't even realized that tears were streaming down her face until she reached up and touched her cheeks. “I... Love you” the hipster whispered, barely able to hear it herself  
“Well, I guess this is goodbye, Caulfield. Everyone abandons me after all”  
Max had never felt anything like what she felt before, it felt as if her heart had simultaneously been torn out of her chest and ripped into two. Gasping for breath she curled in on herself more, keeling over to the side so she was led on the floor, barely aware of the outside world as she rocked and cried to herself, her agony at what was happening beyond her control was easily apparent as she sobbed. Her sobbing has gotten louder and louder as time went by, _I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry... Chloe... You'll never know how much I hate myself because I ghosted you for five years..._


	11. Aftermath

“Caulfield?” Chloe's blue hair and blue eyes appeared in Max's swimmy distorted vision. While she still looked majorly pissed off, her facial expression had softened slightly despite any of her efforts trying to resist and remain pissed off with Max, attempting to hate her. “Fucking hell, Caulfield. You look a mess” _I might be mad with you and think you have to earn your first name back but I'm not completely heartless_  
“C-Chloe” Max stuttered, opening her red bloodshot eyes slightly and sniffling while wiping her nose on her sleeve, leaving a trail of tears and snot behind  
“Huh. I’m surprised you recognized me, yanno, the girl you ghosted for _five fucking years_ ” Chloe snapped the last three words, still incredibly hurt by Max  
_If only you had any idea, Chlo..._ Max opened her mouth to try to speak to her childhood friend but her legs had turned to jelly  
“Whoa, Caulfield!!” Chloe reached out and gripped Max's shoulders to stabilize her, the dazed brunette's short legs giving way beneath her. “Seriously what the fuck were you doing hiding in this fucking bathroom?” _You didn't even try to help!_ Chloe attempted to conceal her hurt at that thought and must've been somewhat successful as the brunette didn't show anymore concern than she had been showing before  
“How did you know I was there??” Max asked, the confusion easily apparent  
“I don't have a clue, but you're an asshole, you know that right?” Chloe narrowed her eyes at her once best friend  
“Fuck... Yeah, I know that” Max sighed. She had ghosted Chloe for years, she did deserve the taller girl's wrath for that, especially after she promised they would always be Max and Chloe

The door opened once again, “Ah, Chloe, I'm glad you're still... Who are you?!” the burly veteran advanced quickly on the girls, his protective side being given a breath of fresh air for a change  
“You're still alive, Chlo, that's enough for me” Max whispered then sighed, both the brunette and blunette had ignored the veteran until he had pulled them both apart and had Max down on the floor of the bathroom in an arm lock while fumbling for his handcuffs.  
“I expect the principal would quite like to know why you were hiding in the bathroom where my stepdaughter was almost murdered” he growled angrily, he had seen the anger in Chloe's eyes, in her stance and had assumed the worst, that this little brunette was out to hurt his stepdaughter  
“Hey!!” Max yelped as she felt herself slam into the floor, she looked up at the man then turned her gaze to Chloe, her beautiful tattooed blunette punky Chloe  
“She was hidden back there, David” Chloe explained, pointing at the corner next to the stalls. “I don't think she was involved in Prescott's plan to murder me though, just in the wrong place at the wrong time”  
“Be as it may,” David replied, “I have to escort her to the principal since he wants to talk to everyone who knows anything about what's going on,” David took a deep breath, “and you... You're leaving. You'll go home and you will stay there” He watched Chloe sternly until the punk had left. David had finished putting the handcuffs on Max then helped her stand. “What's your name, girlie?”  
“M-Max” Max stuttered, “Max Caulfield. I swear I wasn’t involved, Mr. Madsen, I just came in here to splash my face with water and have a small breakdown, sir.” _Cos my childhood best friend was about to get murdered... Again_

*****

Chloe had quickly arrived at home, her mother, Joyce was still out at work, her shift at the Two Whales not due to conclude for another two hours. “Shit” Chloe grumbled, _why now, Caulfield? I've only just gotten over you, and all the shit you put me through in that basement. Wait what? What fucking basement?_ Kicking the fridge closed she moved over to the old couch and slumped into it, taking a few quick gulps from her bottle of beer. _Shit, Caulfield has gotten her ass arrested, by step douche no less_. She scoffed at the thought of her two least favorite people being locked in a war of words, one against the other. The _fine upstanding_ veteran versus the small timid hippie, both of whom had hurt the punk in more ways than one. Feeling the anger build up in her once again, anger that once she had thought of a third person, became almost impossible to control. An unimaginable heat was building up in the body of the punk as paperwork around the Price family home began rustling and flapping as if a strong wind blew through the house. “Shit” she hissed despite barely being aware of her surroundings, absently wondering if one of the adults, her mom or maybe step-douche had left the windows open and if she'd get the blame for making a mess. “FUCK YOU!!” She screamed, thinking about the three people she hated most, recoiling as there was a soft whump in front of her and a sudden blast of heat, her legs giving way as she fell to the floor at a strange angle

*****

“I'm sorry Mr. Wells, I don't know anything about why Prescott was threatening that blue haired girl with a gun”  
“Well, Ms. Price is a very troubled young woman”  
“No, she's not!!” Max exclaimed, “that's not how it looked to me anyway, I’d say he was the one who was troubled, he was the one demanding shit and he was the one threatening... Ms. Price”  
“Thank you Ms. Caulfield” Wells indicated the door, he gave nothing away as Max left. _Shit. I need a fuckin’ whiskey_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave reviews! How am I doing? What do y'all think is gonna happen next? Are you enjoying this story?


	12. Realization

Max had been released from Principal Wells' office but had been confined to her dorm room for the duration of the internal investigation. She had been escorted back to her room, room 219 by David Madsen who had then locked the door from the outside, clicking the lock twice to deadlock it, something which Max hadn't even known was possible. Neither David nor Wells explained that if Max wanted to use the bathroom she would have to call security to let her out, Wells had been too preoccupied with trying to keep Sean Prescott's goodwill while David had been too pissed off to even consider it. He was disappointed with Chloe, sure but was pissed off with the stranger, _Max Caulfield_ he recalled vaguely. He wondered why that name was so familiar but pushed it out of his mind as he pulled up outside 44 Cedar Avenue, his house which he shared with his wife and stepdaughter. David thought that girl, Max had shown a lot of balls lying to David’s face and while he wouldn't ever be able to prove it, he had a sneaking suspicion that the girl’s words had been a complete and utter lie, that she was aware Chloe had been about to die and may have even had a part in events that led up to her being in that bathroom. Pushing further thoughts of work aside, he stepped into his house, immediately noticing that there was a foot visible from the hallway. “What the _fuck_?!” he hissed out loud and ran forward, finding Chloe led on the floor, her body splayed out, her arms and legs at weird angles. A single bottle of beer had rolled away from where she was led leaving a trail of alcohol and he knew that one beer wouldn't be enough to make her drink enough to pass out, the girl didn't appear to have finished the bottle going by the mess on the carpet. Having remotely checked his surveillance system before leaving work, he knew Chloe had indeed give home without stopping and that only increased his concern for the girl who was led spread-eagled and unconscious after what appeared to only be half a bottle. A faint smudging of blood on the side of her head, just below her ear caught his attention. “Chloe!! Chloe no!!”

*****

Max was stuck in her room for hours, so she badly needed the pee by the time one of the security people came by to escort her to the bathroom. “Hey, you don't need to do this yanno, I'm innocent in whatthefuckever happened in that bathroom” Max pled quietly to the guard.  
“That’s what they all say. Mr. Madsen told us that he thinks you lied to him about what you were doing in that bathroom, nobody here believes your innocent hipster act, not anymore”  
“Fine!!” Max had snapped, finally losing her patience with all the morons around her, “I'm a fucking time traveler and I came back to save the town from a storm I created. I almost sacrificed my oldest and only childhood friend, _okay_?! Got it?!” _Fucking asshole!!_

*****

Joyce had been at work when she had received the call from David. The call that something had happened at school and Chloe had been involved. He had just found her lying on the ground unconscious. She swore loudly and rushed off, not even attempting to explain what was going on to her boss, she had been working at the Two Whales for long enough for there to only be concern when Joyce had to leave in a hurry. She rushed back in her old clapped out car, though compared to Chloe's truck it looked factory fresh. Running into the living room she saw Chloe led on her side in the recovery position, dried blood on the sides of her head and having run from her nose. “David?” she inquired, breathing heavily, the combination of running and cigarettes doing her no favors  
“Joyce, Chloe was almost shot today. She went to Blackwell and had a gun pulled on her by Nathan Prescott”  
“WHAT?!”  
“There's more, I went into the bathroom to check it out and ended up arresting Nathan, but when I came back I found Chloe was still in the bathroom and was glaring at this smaller girl,” he explained, “said her name was M... Cau-something or other” he mumbled the last sentence  
“Oh, Chloe...” Joyce sat next to her and took her daughter's hand  
“And when I got back, right before I called you, I discovered Chloe slumped in the living room right next to that scorch mark on the wall. He indicated a blackened portion of the wall where a picture of a certain brunette had once resided but was no more than a pile of ash on the floor  
“Oh, Chloe why did you burn that picture of you and Max?”  
“Max...?” _Max Caulfield?!?_ David’s eyes widened so much that he was surprised that his eyeballs didn't simply roll out of their sockets. _That's the bitch!!_ “That's why that name sounded so familiar...”


	13. Max: Things that would have happened

The brunette girl led on her hospital bed with tears streaming down her face. She didn’t really remember what had happened but somehow she awoke to find herself in Arcadia General Hospital. One side of her chest was red raw from burns and her stomach twinged painfully. Too weak to lift her head to inspect her chest and stomach to see what was wrong she continued crying into the silence of the room, Chloe was dead. Even with her immensely powerful rewind ability, Chloe was dead, she was sure of it. Back in the bathroom, she had seen the mop of blue hair on the ground out of the corner of her eye along with another body. Not really understanding what was going on in the bathroom, Max had attempted to lift her head to feel the pull of the raw skin on her chest and the agony from her stomach. _What the fuck?_ The brunette had groaned and turned her head to see where she was. Seeing the blue walls and the stalls of the bathroom, Max had realized where she was. The bathroom... _Chloe!! Oh no!! I failed!!_ Max attempted to sit only to be restrained by someone with black hair and a mustache. David  
“Easy girlie” he had said, “you're hurt”  
“Rewind... I gotta rewind”  
“Huh?” The man grunted out his confusion while moved over to Chloe to check on her and his hands started shaking.  
“I said that out loud?” Max mused. _Shit._  
“I can't... I can't find her pulse” David mumbled from over by Chloe. Despite her injuries, Max rolled over and closer to Chloe, her stomach agonizing as she put pressure on it and the raw skin pulling and splitting as she rolled over. Groaning and with her eyes clamped tightly shut, Max was able to reach out and grip Chloe's hand. “Do you know my daughter?” David had asked moments before she passed out.

Max had awoken once again an unknown number of hours after she had passed out in the bathroom to find herself in the hospital, her stomach sutured shut and her chest wrapped in special burns dressings. “ _Ouch,_ ” she had groaned and soon she had remembered her last memory, of Chloe led lifelessly on the floor of the bathroom, resulting in tears streaming from her eyes and snot pouring from her nose. “Ch-Chlo” Max stuttered, trying to hold in the sobs that were desperate to escape. She didn't want to be seen to be crying, she just wanted to be left alone and she knew the act of crying was likely to cause her unbearable agony thanks to her injuries. Her mind was still reeling, trying to work out what had happened but was unable to remember it at all  
“Ah, Ms. Caulfield, you're awake!!” a voice called from by the door  
_Huh?_ The Vulnerable brunette wiped her face and turned her head toward the noise, seeing a young woman dressed in a nurse’s uniform striding toward her. _I’m in the hospital? Figures. What the actual fuck happened though??_  
“We were concerned you wouldn't ever wake up. You lost a lot of blood from your wound and went into shock because of the burns” the nurse explained  
_Burns?_  
Max's confusion must have been visible on her face as the nurse nodded and opened her mouth to explain. “You were the luckiest of the three, some freak accident, possibly when the gun exploded, torched you and one other, you were shot as well as the nine percent third degree burns you have on your chest, side and arm”  
_I also got shot? As if being scorched wasn’t enough_ Max grumbled quietly to herself. “Where-where’s Chloe?”  
“Ms. Price? I'm so so sorry, she... Didn't make it”  
_No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No_  
“There wasn't any sign of any injury, she just dropped dead. The post-mortem should tell us more”  
_What the holy fuck..._  
“She was a lot luckier than the other person, Nathan Prescott. He burned alive”  
“Oh my god... Nathan’s dead?” Max recalled the desperate voicemail from the poor guy, warning her about Jefferson. _Poor guy... He may have tried to kill Chloe but he didn't want any of this_  
“The police have reason to believe that he was the one who took the gun in... It got hot but the fingerprints were still there and only his...” The nurse’s eyes had widened in utter shock, “Ms. Caulfield, what the hell do you think you’re doing?!”  
Max had attempted to push herself into a sitting position, the adrenaline allowing her to ignore the intense spikes of pain coming from her stomach, _the gunshot wound_ she had reasoned, and her chest where she was burned. Max, ignoring the nurse, lifted her bandaged arm to summon her rewind and could feel her power spooling up inside of her and getting ready to be released. “Gotta rewind time. I'm the motherfucking Time Warrior and I'm gonna make time my bitch!” the brunette repeated her mantra a few times before her eyes rolled up into her head and she passed out from the exertion of trying to use her powers too soon

*****

Max woke up with a cry. Looking around she was calmed slightly by the realization that she was locked in her dorm room, the security guard she had screamed at had been rewound as Max knew it probably wouldn't be a good idea to allow him to keep his memory of that conversation. That meant the dream she had just experienced was only a nightmare, or was it a memory that she simply couldn't remember for some reason? The brunette had been quickly losing her sense of what was real and what was not, as a result of the visions she had experienced, the fucked up dreams she knew she had had in the past but couldn't remember, and not to mention all the rewinding she had done. The girl was able to take reassurance from the fact that, in this timeline, Chloe wasn't dead. Yes, Chloe was pissed with her for hiding in the bathroom and leaving Chloe to deal with the mad man that was Nathan Prescott, as well as the five years of being ghosted, but Max reasoned that at least she was _alive_ to be pissed with Max


	14. Memories

“Mmph, w-where am I?” Chloe slowly opened her eyes to a massive jolt of pain as the offensively bright hospital light punctured her eyeballs and forced her to close her eyes from the pain. “ _Fuck_ ”  
“Chloe, you're awake!!” Joyce sat next to the bed and Chloe became aware of a hand in her own. “We were both so worried about you”  
“M-mom? Mommy?” Chloe stuttered, holding her head. _What the hell?_  
“It's me, Chloe” Joyce's tone was gentle and calming  
“Where am I? What happened?” Chloe hid her eyes behind her hands to shield them from the harsh fluorescent lights

“Hey, kid” David spoke quietly, his gruff voice sounding quieter than was customary for a man of his status. As a step-douche he was best known for ordering his stepdaughter around and yelling at her, the shock of seeing her in that bathroom with a madman with a gun had finally gotten through to him. “I found you on the floor in the living room with a spilled bottle of beer and blood running from your nose and ears”  
“Oh” Chloe hadn't realized that had happened, she had been unconscious before she had hit the floor and had been unconscious for a fair few hours. _What the fuck?_  
“Why did you burn that picture of your best friend, Max?” Joyce asked gently  
_Huh?_ “Mom, I didn't burn that photo but...” Joyce felt her heart drop at the but, she knew it was going to be bad. “Max isn't my friend, mom. She _abandoned_ me, ghosted me for five _fucking_ years and didn't help me when she could've when I was in the bathroom. Had to do it all myself” _as per usual_  
“What do you mean she could've helped you?” Joyce's brows furrowed  
“There was a girl called Max Caulfield in the bathroom where Chloe almost got murdered. I didn't see her the first time I went in there so I guess she was hiding” David interrupted then explained  
“Behind the stalls like a coward. There was a fire alarm right next to her” Chloe snapped in frustration  
“So in my eyes, she's guilty through complacency” David growled  
“Chloe, stop it!” Joyce snapped, “David, please calm down, you don't understand”  
“Max was my best friend, mom, she abandoned me!!”  
“What don't I understand?” David chipped in, not used to being told to back off by his wife  
“David, you don't understand what Max was, is like. She was the most skittish little thing” Joyce explained. “She had trouble interacting with anyone who wasn't Chloe, me or William. She preferred Chloe of course but anyone else she tended to hide behind Chloe or her parents! That's how shy and timid that girl was. At first, she was timid even around Chloe, poor thing didn't know how to cope with Chloe's enthusiasm”

*****

Chloe was transported back by Joyce's words, back to a time she could still remember as clearly as if it had happened the day before. She had been five years old and playing on the beach in the height of summer, running from her father who was playing the role of the anti-hero Bloody Bill, Cap'n Bluebeard's arch-rival and the seadog and privateer who was always attempting to steal all of Bluebeard’s booty when she heard an ear-splitting scream from nearby and she went off to investigate. Chloe had found a small brunette girl with freckles splotched across her face, to Chloe it looked as if someone had taken a paintbrush of brown paint and flicked it at her face and she was crying so much that the mighty Bluebeard actually stopped to investigate.

“No! No! You r-ruined it!!” the girl had sobbed, looking up at two bigger boys who had looks of mocking glee on their faces as they stomped on the girl's sand-fort and a sand-boat that was flying a Jolly Roger while pulling mercilessly on a bear between them. “ _P-please_ , give him back!” The brunette begged without much success  
At that moment Chloe's heart went out to the girl, she hadn't ever seen anyone do anything like that and as one of the most gentle souls in Arcadia Bay, she ran forward and launched herself at the boys. She was furious with them for their obvious cruelty, the girl’s sobs making it clear that she was not enjoying the boys’ ‘game’. “Stop!!” she had screamed while hurtling toward the boys who ignored her and continued tugging on the teddy until it split into two with a heartbreaking tearing sound. The little brunette screamed louder, the beloved teddy that she'd had since she was born fell carelessly to the floor, broken and forgotten by the boys. By that point, two people were running toward the girl, a black-haired woman and a lumberjack of a man but they weren't close enough. Livid, Chloe plowed into the two boys and knocked them away from the girl. “GET AWAY FROM HER!!” Chloe roared, so loudly that her parents who were by the water heard her and started running toward the commotion as well. Chloe meanwhile stood between the brunette who has shrunk back and attempted to make herself as small as possible and the two boys who were taken aback by the human missile that had just knocked them back. The two boys, the bullies of the third grade, cracked their knuckles as they stood to face off against the livid girl who had stood over them despite not even being at school yet, therefore, they had a few years of growth and strength as an advantage  
“No!” the brunette screamed again as a fist connected with Chloe's face, knocking her off balance, the little brunette hadn't ever seen anyone get hurt before and was terrified. “Mom!! Dad!!” she shrieked, she didn't even know where her parents were despite them telling her they were going to get ice cream and had barely left her alone for five minutes before the commotion began  
Chloe growled and punched back, hard. The first bully crumpled with a howl once the adrenaline-fueled fist made contact with his boy bits while Chloe let out a victorious cry of “YES!!” Unfortunately, the second bully had gotten into a position behind Chloe, a position where Chloe couldn't see him and viciously shoved her over. Chloe fell forward and into the sand with a cracking sound, soon Chloe herself was crying from the pain.

A few seconds later, four furious parents had arrived. Even William, Chloe's father who couldn't get mad with his daughter no matter what she did was beyond mad. “What the _hell_ did you do?!” he yelled at the bully who still stood, his blue pants became a shade or two darker when faced with four majorly pissed off parents. Despite being the grade bully he wasn’t used to getting into trouble since the teachers often ignored his actions even when they were told about what he had been getting up to.  
“Leave her alone!!” Ryan, Max's father had growled, incensed, moving to stand between the two girls and the boys, consequently towering over the now terrified bullies. He and his wife had seen the tail end of the confrontation as they ran back towards their distressed daughter, they had seen the boys ripping Max's teddy and Chloe intervening and his eyes were narrowed and fiery while he glared at the boys, one of whom was just standing up after being punched by Chloe  
“You’re in so much trouble young man!” Joyce hissed as she kneeled down next to her little girl who was crying and holding her wrist  
“I'm calling the cops” Vanessa, Max's mother stated, at that the boys ran away  
“Consider yourselves and your parents banned from the Two Whales, for _life_!!” Joyce screamed after them, she was even more furious than Ryan but not quite as livid as William. Joyce reached out and took Chloe's arm, “broken” she sighed, “those _bastards_!!”  
“I see them” Vanessa pointed at them, sprinting off back toward their families. Unfortunately for them, Vanessa Caulfield was a lawyer and she would be filing paperwork the next Monday for those boys patents to be paying for any hospital treatment her girl’s savior world need. “Name’s Vanessa by the way, Vanessa Caulfield and this is my husband Ryan” she indicated the lumberjack man who had picked up his daughter tenderly and pulled her close while she wailed and sobbed  
“Joyce Price” Joyce replied, “my husband William” she indicated the man in question  
“Hey” the gentle man smiled kindly while kneeling next to his daughter who had nuzzled her face into the man’s shoulder, her face streaked with the tears she had shed. “This is my daughter, Chloe. Ever the fearless defender of those that need defending, despite being a pirate at heart”  
“Arrr” Chloe replied throatily, still struggling to control her tears brought on by the agony emanating from her wrist  
“This is our daughter Maxine” Vanessa indicated the terrified four-year-old who had clung to her father ever since he had arrived at her side, the girl was shaking from fear, adrenaline and wracking from her sobs at the lost teddy

“Hey” Chloe whispered after a few moments. She stood up, still clinging to Williams’s hand with her good hand and moved over to Max, releasing her father's hand once she had gotten to get destination. She gently took the younger girl's hand and squeezed it gently, still keeping her other arm completely still and away from everything. “Max? Is it okay if I call you Max?” Chloe squeezed the younger girl’s hand to get her attention. Max looked over fearfully, she had seen how quickly Chloe had gotten into a scrap with those bullies and was scared of her. “Dad? Can you get the Captain?” the blonde girl asked. “Those pant-pee-ers broke Max's bear.” The man nodded and disappeared off for a few moments to retrieve the teddy from their own picnic blanket which has been abandoned as a result of the fight. He returned with the teddy and held it out for Chloe who shook her head and gave a meaningful look at Max. Immediately understanding, William had turned to Max, knelt down to be closer to her height and held out the Captain to the younger girl. “Take it, Max. Please?” Chloe whispered,” you lost yours and I’d like you to have mine”  
“O-okay” Max slowly extended her arm, the one who's hand wasn’t otherwise occupied with holding Chloe's hand and took the Captain. The freckled girl pulled it into her chest and twisted side to side with a small grin  
“Happy to see you like him” Chloe whispered, squeezing Max's hand with her good hand to help calm her  
“I _love_ him, Chlo” Max replied, letting go of her father and clinging to the blonde she had just met instead, Chloe instinctively rubbing the younger girl's back to calm her

“Excuse me girls” William interrupted, “but we gotta take Chloe to the hospital to get that arm of hers fixed.” Both girls pouted and Max tightened her grip, both intimidated by the strangers and scared they'd separate her from her friend, her first-ever friend. “Tell you what Maxine, you can come along too” William corrected himself with a gentle smile on his face, watching both girls as they immediately ‘turned those frowns upside down’  
“And if you're good for Mr. and Mrs. Price, Maxine we might even agree to let you stay over for a sleepover” Ryan added, immediately able to trust the Prices with his beloved daughter since they had raised their daughter so well  
“Max, _never_ Maxine!!” Max had squeaked with a pout much to the amusement of the adults, they were amused that Max had taken to her new nickname like a fish to water. The Prices and Caulfields exchanged phone numbers and addresses and Ryan promised to bring Max’s pajamas and toiletries over to the Price household once Chloe had gotten her arm fixed up. Max jumped for joy while Chloe settled on grinning mainly since her arm still hurt a lot and both girls settled down in the Prices' car for the journey to the hospital, neither girl was quite aware of how long-lasting that friendship would become and how much they would do for each other.

*****

“I remember, mom” Chloe whispered with tears in her eyes. “I'll go see her” she vowed, pulling her keys out of her jeans pocket and heading toward the front door  
“You can't. She's confined to quarters by Wells until the investigation is complete” David replied, placing a hand on Chloe's shoulder to make sure she stayed in bed, a hand which she shrugged off.  
“And you’re in the hospital for some fainting fit” Joyce added  
“Then I shall bash Wells' head against the wall or floor, preferably the floor since it's concrete until he lets her go” Chloe replied with a shrug, heading out to head toward Blackwell and her oldest, dearest friend, a friend she still loved deeply in more ways than one.


	15. Hug and make peace

Max sat in her room, reluctant to move anymore. She still had her rewind powers but Chloe hated her and, for some reason, rewinding Chloe just felt plain _wrong_. The brunette didn't care about rewinding anyone else to get what she wanted but not Chloe, never Chloe. _I'm alone. I gotta do this whole thing by myself. Save Chloe, save the town. Find Rachel. Work out why the hell I can't remember what happened before I came back... I could always remember what I did before a rewind, even when I did a photo jump_  
“Max? You okay?” a timid female voice came through from the other side of the door  
Removing her hands from her face so that her voice wouldn't be muffled anymore Max raised her voice to reply. “Kate? Yea I'm fine, Kate. Are you okay?”   
“Yea, Yea. I'm okay, Max” Kate sniffled but it was too quiet for the brunette to hear, she had received quite the humiliation for the Vortex Club video which had quickly become viral and was most likely making the rounds at most high schools in the state. She was thankful though, her family nor church had found out about it... Yet  
“I'm sorry, I would love to come out and get a tea with you but they've locked me in while this...”  
“Hey!!” Kate exclaimed suddenly, cutting Max off  
“Sorry, Katie” a familiar voice murmured, “this is incredibly important”  
“I understand”

Bang!! Bang!! “Stand back, Caulfield!!” Bang! The door splintered on the third kick and Chloe stumbled into Max's dorm room. “Shit!!” the blue-haired girl cried as she fell forward into the room  
“Chloe! Are you okay?” Max jumped up off her bed to help the young woman to her feet  
“I'm fine, Caulfield” Chloe brushed her hand off, ignoring the pained wince of the brunette. “We need to move”  
“I-I can't” Max stuttered, shame filling her. Chloe had come back for her yet she was still refusing to even do something so simple they might help fix their broken relationship  
“Fuck that, Max!!” Max's head shot up and she actually looked Chloe in the eye, a mistake as she found herself tearing up with all the combined weight of five years of regret. “You never could break a rule, could you?” Max blushed at Chloe's words, it was true, she had always been the one to obey every rule while Chloe had been the rebel who attempted to break every rule she could. Embarrassed, Max shook her head while yet more shame filled her  
“I-I'm sorry, Chloe”  
“No, I'm sorry, Max. I lost my temper”  
“You always did have a short fuse, Chlo” Max smiled timidly at her former best friend. “I didn't expect to see you again so soon”   
“Yea, well I had a slight flashback to when we first met, Maxi”  
Max blushed, she didn't really remember the event but her parents and Chloe's certainly did and they took parent’s pleasure in tormenting the teen throughout her life. Of course, Max never forgot Chloe giving her The Captain, in fact, Max still slept with the bear. “I'm so sorry, Chlo, for everything”  
“I'm sorry too, now let's blow this joint!” Chloe gripped Max's hand and raced out of the timid brunette’s room, past the awestruck Kate who hadn’t ever seen anything like that before. 

“Wait, Chloe.” Max tugged on the older woman's hand, dragging her to a stop  
“Max?” Max lifted her hand and grabbed the almost imperceptible thing running through her hand, around her the entirety of reality slammed to a halt. Twisting her wrist counter-clockwise resulted in time creeping back, nanosecond by nanosecond. “What the _fuck_!?” an amazed voice reminded Max that she was still holding her former best friend’s hand as time sped up around them, the door flying back together and reattaching itself to the door frame. Kate's awestruck look faded back to one of concern as a shadow-Chloe moved back down the hallway, away from the door  
Max released her grip on time, “better not to land you in trouble as the first thing I do when we reunite properly, Joyce would never let me live it down” Max chuckled and suddenly Chloe was laughing a full-on belly laugh, followed closely by her former best friend. Both young women completely ignored the fact that a startled blonde bun wearing girl had whirled around to face two young women who had just literally appeared out of nowhere  
“Pfft. Okay, Miss. _Goody Two Shoes_ ” Chloe rolled her eyes and embraced her best friend. “I'm sorry for what I said earlier, Maxipad”

A small titter of delicate laughter interrupted the moment the two reunited friends were having and they both turned to face Kate, both their faces lit up in happiness at the blonde who was no longer miserable and crying but genuinely laughing. “I'm not sure what just happened, but I'm happy you two have reunited”  
 _Wait, what just happened?_ Max asked herself even as Chloe grew concerned

**Author's Note:**

> Please leave reviews!!!


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